Lenten Day Retreat in Collegeville

All who would like to go are invited to Collegeville on Saturday, March 19. We will experience three wonderful aspects of that town:

1. The Episcopal House of Prayer: We will be led on a tour of the house by Christine Luna Munger, PhD, the director of the EHOP. She will teach about spiritual practices and we will have the opportunity to practice contemplative prayer and perhaps other methods of prayer and contemplative practice. This is a natural continuation to Blair’s introducing us to and equipping us with spiritual practices. For over thirty years, the Episcopal House of Prayer has been welcoming groups and individuals into its living and sacred spaces for retreat, contemplation, and a time and space apart.
2. The Saint John’s Bible: In 1998, Saint John’s Abbey and University commissioned a renowned calligrapher to produce a hand-written, hand-illuminated Bible. We will take a docent led tour of this work of art that unites an ancient Benedictine tradition with the technology and vision of today, illuminating the Word of God for a new millennium.
3. The Saint John’s Pottery: For forty years, the Saint John’s Pottery has embodied the Benedictine values of community, hospitality and self-sufficiency as well as the University’s commitment to the integration of art and life; the preservation of the environment; the linkage between work and worship; and the celebration of diverse cultures. We will experience a guided tour and explore the cycles of clay processing and glaze development as well as preparation and firing of the Johanna Kiln each fall. While the works produced in the studio are art in their own right, they also embody a vision for a more whole world.

We will leave St. Matthew’s on Saturday morning, March 19 at 8:30 am by carpool, arriving at the Episcopal House of Prayer by 9:45 am. We will have lunch at the Episcopal House of Prayer and return to St. Matthew’s by approximately 5:00 pm.

Every member of the parish is invited and we hope you will join us for a wonderful day! Please RSVP to Dan White.

Image: St. John’s Bible on exhibition at MIA. Photograph (2011) by Flickr user jpellgen, reproduced under CC-BY-NC-ND 2.0 via Flickr.